Bright Future for Farmed Tuna in Mediterranean
From: Dave Conley, Aquaculture Info List dave.conley@sympatico.ca
Sent: 27 September 2001
http://new.seafood.com/
Seafood.com September 26, 2001 --By Ken Coons—
IntraFish reports that the entire Mediterranean TAC
for bluefin tuna could be profitably utilized in grow-out operations.
Already, almost half of the total catch, between 12,000 - 14,000 tons is
being held in cages from when it is caught in May-June until the winter
market when average prices increase tenfold.
Currently, Spain farms about 6,000-7,000 tons of tuna, Croatia farms about
1,500 tons and Malta farms about 1,000 tons.
Carmelo Agius, a consultant, told IntraFish that, 'There's a joint Japanese
- Moroccan project running at the moment in Morocco. They've managed to
hatch the eggs and grow on for a limited period, but there's a long way to
go, it's still in the experimental stage. The site being used at the moment
is close to the Straits of Gibraltar, so there's a high inflow rate of cold
water from the Atlantic. I believe they'd do better on a site further into
the Med. It's a long-term vision, maybe in 10 - 15 years we'll see success
with growing tuna from scratch.'
Agius said he sees great potential for the expansion of tuna farming in
other areas. 'Whereas in the Mediterranean the TAC is 30,000 tons,' he said,
'in the Gulf of Mexico there's only 2,000 tons, shared between Canada the US
and Mexico. I reckon they'll start tuna farming there soon. I've also just
visited Turkey in connection with a project there, and I'm travelling to
Paris today in connection with another big project for the Mediterranean, a
joint European/North African venture. Of all fish-farming, this is one of
the fastest growing.'